


Just Us

by stfunikka



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Canon Compliant, Canon Rewrite, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-04
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-17 19:28:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,344
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29846370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stfunikka/pseuds/stfunikka
Summary: A rewrite of Book 3, Chapter 1; picks up from the diamond scene with Bryce.
Relationships: Bryce Lahela/Main Character (Open Heart), Bryce Lahela/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	Just Us

**Author's Note:**

> soooo my mc finally has her own name: quincy bennett. she doesn't have a backstory yet... and maybe she never will lolololol 
> 
> anyways i’m not experienced at writing fics but book 3 chapter 1 bryce left me so upset that i decided to do a rewrite. the only thing i stole from canon is the last bit of the diamond scene and some of the flashbacks, everything else is from my one brain cell.......... all i’m gonna say is i tried my best

...

A little while later, Quincy adjusts her clothing and smooths her hair back in place.

“Nice break from the party?” Bryce asks. His gaze is trained downwards as he tucks his shirt back into his trousers.

“A perfect refresher,” she says, a small smirk playing on her lips.

Bryce doesn’t respond, his attention momentarily fixed on his belt buckle. When he finally looks at her, she can’t help but notice that he’s not entirely present.

“We should head back… separately.” He utters the last word hesitantly. “I’ll go first then you can follow.”

“Oh?” It’s the only reply Quincy can manage, unsure if she heard him right.

“Yeah. We, uh… we wouldn’t want to draw attention, would we?”

Before Quincy can say another word, Bryce reaches for the doorknob. He throws her one last look, followed by a forced chuckle as he hurries off down the hall.

She doesn’t return a smile, too stunned by the sudden change in his behavior. 

It’s not like it’s the first time they did it. They’ve snuck out of events before but they always returned together. Even when they _were_ just hooking up, he never left her like this. So what changed?

Quincy looks down at her body, feeling embarrassed—cheap, even, if she’s being honest—but she doesn’t spend any more time feeling sorry for herself because after five minutes, she heads back to the party. 

She can always throw a self-pity afterparty when she gets home.

-

After that night, Quincy has been careful not to make her company too imposing but it only seems to drive him away.

When she ran into him at the hospital, she would attempt to make small talk but he was hardly responsive. 

_This guy talks even during the movies_ , she thought beforehand. _How hard can it be?_

Hard enough, apparently.

Bryce also stopped showing up at lunch with the group. Quincy tried not to take it personally but one time, she got to the cafeteria a little later than her friends and she found him at their table, engrossed in conversation. She was hopeful he wouldn’t blow her off in front of the others but she had barely crossed the room when his eyes involuntarily darted to her. Suddenly, he had somewhere else to be.

Quincy’s mind keeps going back to the night of the cocktail mixer. Everything seemed okay before they snuck up to the roof garden—when Bryce _asked_ her to sneak up with him—but maybe she missed something? 

She tries to recall every single thing that happened that night but that’s really all there was: they almost got caught, they kissed, took it further... and then he left her there alone. When she eventually returned to the party without raising any suspicion, Bryce still maintained a distance. She would occasionally catch him looking at her but he would quickly divert his eyes elsewhere. And not in the most heart fluttering way. It only confused her further when he offered her a ride home but she later realized it was out of courtesy when he remained quiet the entire drive. He looked a bit agitated so she asked if something was bothering him. He simply said no. It was obviously a lie but she didn’t push him to talk.

 _If anyone should be acting weird, it’s me._

Her train of thought quickly comes to a halt when she steps out of the building and spots Bryce. He’s chattering with a few surgical residents, looking like his usual cheery self and completely at ease. And just like that, her indignation dissipates only to be replaced by longing. 

She misses him too much.

One of the residents sees her and jerks his chin in her direction before turning to Bryce. As soon as Bryce follows the movement, his smile drops.

Her heart does, too. 

“See you around, Lahela,” says another resident with a knowing but benevolent smile plastered on his face. Bryce pointedly ignores it and waves the others goodbye. 

Quincy waits until his friends are out of earshot before she approaches him.

“Hi,” she starts meekly. 

“Hey.”

“What was that about?”

“It’s nothing,” he says in one breath and proceeds to change the subject. “Everything okay?

“Yeah. I just, um… do you wanna hang out?” She timidly offers. “I think it’s a nice night to go for a walk.” 

Quincy curses herself as soon as the words come out. _‘I think it’s a nice night to go for a walk’? Who says it like that?_

“It’s just…” she continues. “It’s been a while.” 

“Oh… yeah. Sure.” His voice, on the contrary, does not sound sure.

They haven’t gotten far when the tension in the air greatly amplifies. Upon realizing Bryce won’t break the ice anytime soon, Quincy takes matters into her own hands before they completely fall into uncomfortable silence.

“So…” she starts as casually as she can, given the circumstances. “How’s Keiki?” 

He smiles at the mention of his sister. “Most likely enjoying her time away from me.”

“And that James kid?” She joshes.

“Oh god.” He rolls his eyes in good nature. “Let’s just say I haven’t had a reason to use my scalpels on him… but I still have them ready.” He throws her a sideway glance with a glint of mischief in his eyes. 

Quincy chuckles. “You miss her?”

“All the time.” Bryce softens his expression and turns to her. “She says hi, by the way. She misses you.”

“I miss her, too.” _And you._ “Tell her that for me?”

“Sure.”

He looks so normal at the moment that her yearning for him only grows heavier in her chest. 

Quincy is itching to ask Bryce about the party but she knows she’s treading a fine line. One wrong step can have him retreating back to his cold demeanor so she maneuvers the conversation.

“How about you? How have you been?” 

“I’ve been okay. You?” 

“Same.” 

He only nods in response. They continue to walk in silence.

Every once in a while, Quincy makes comments in jest to ease the strain between them. Bryce also tries to reciprocate but the whole conversation feels dry. After a few forced chuckles and a series of jokes that fall flat, they don’t push it any further.

As hard as it is to ignore the absence of their usual banter, she shifts her focus on her surroundings but, as fate would have it, it’s the very street they walked hand-in-hand the night before their second year. She recalls that evening being just as quiet but God, was it comfortable.

From the corner of her eye, she catches something glitter in the distance. She discerns the moonlight’s reflection on the Charles where Bryce talked her into joining him for a midnight swim. She wonders if he remembers that night but she decides it’s best to not bring it up. 

It all feels like forever ago. He probably doesn’t even think about it anymore. 

Quincy’s been preoccupied all night, racking her brain for any reason, her sense of direction solely being guided by Bryce walking beside her. It’s only when they stop outside her apartment that she realizes he walked her home. He lets her know he’ll wait until she’s inside her unit before he leaves. 

_At least, not everything has changed._

However, his mind already seems to be somewhere else. 

“Bryce, are we okay?” Quincy blurts out before she can stop herself. 

There’s a flash of surprise on Bryce’s face but it quickly vanishes. Even so, she takes note of the shift in his stance. 

“Yeah. Why do you ask?” 

“It’s just… maybe it’s just me? But lately, you’ve been acting kinda different.”

“What do you mean?” 

“You’ve been a little distant.” 

Bryce digs his hands into his pockets and casually shrugs, though he’s looking at anything but her. “Work’s just been pretty hectic, is all. And I’m still Keiki’s guardian. I just have a lot on my plate.”

“I would know; it’s been busy in the Diagnostics team, too. But you seem fine with everyone else.”

Having registered her tone, his eyes shoot up to meet hers. “Quinn, it’s nothing personal.”

“Why are you avoiding me then?”

“I’m right here-”

“You know what I mean, Bryce.” Quincy just wants to clear the air but so far, it’s only aggravating her frustration. “You’ve barely talked to me. And every single time for the past week, I try to seek you out but you’re always running off somewhere. If you want me to give you space, I will but, at least, tell me what I did.”

“You didn’t do anything,” he mutters. There’s also a look of guilt on his face that Quincy can’t help but blunt the sharpness of her tone. 

“After we-” She catches herself as the humiliation from that night rushes back to her. “You said you didn’t want to ‘draw attention.’ What did you mean by that?”

“Nothing,” he says too defensively. Quincy continues to scrutinize him. “ _Nothing_ , Quinn.”

“We both know that’s bullshit,” she retorts. “You never cared about what other people think then suddenly you’re acting like you don’t wanna be seen with me. Like it’s a bad thing.”

“Why does it matter? We’re not together.”

_Oh._

He’s not wrong. They’ve never made anything official but Quincy refuses to believe that whatever this is they’ve had for three years meant nothing to him. Not after when he stayed by her side when they both thought it would be her last night. Not after the things he said to her at the gala.

 _You have me, Quinn. You always have me._

In spite of that, she’s more livid at herself than she is at him for letting this happen. She should’ve said something sooner. Instead, she chose to walk on eggshells around him. All because she didn’t want to make him uncomfortable.

Her mind is so clouded by everything she’s bottled up that she completely overlooks the expression on Bryce’s face, who seems to be just as taken aback by his own words as she is.

“You’re right. It doesn’t,” spits Quincy. “It doesn’t matter that you were the one who asked me to go with you only to leave me there right after we had sex. It doesn’t matter that you’ve been so unbothered while I _still_ feel pathetic and so fucking used. And it definitely doesn’t matter that even then, I’m the one who’s been trying so many times to reach out to you. Yeah, Bryce, I guess none of that fucking matters because we’re not together.”

Bryce only watches her with a layer of mist over his eyes, the pupils frantically roaming her face. From her peripheral, she sees him clenching his fists at intervals. It’s the most emotion he’s shown her in days that for a second, Quincy thinks he’ll say something—anything—but he doesn’t.

With her chest heaving and her breaths becoming erratic, she finally asks. “What are we?” 

Truth be told, she’s not entirely sure if she is ready for an answer to that question but she needs one now.

To her dismay, he remains silent. 

_There’s my answer._

Quincy presses her tongue against the roof of her mouth as soon as the film of tears in her eyes thickens. She’s not going to let him see her like this. Not when it’s over him.

“Good night, Bryce.” 

She moves to enter the building. Before the door shuts behind her, she hears Bryce whisper her name pleadingly but she doesn’t look back.

-

When Quincy steps into the apartment, she heads straight to her bedroom with her head hanging low to conceal the dam in her eyes. She can trust her friends with anything but she’s not in the mood to be checked up on. So when Sienna voices her concern, Quincy simply throws her a quick thumbs up over her shoulder before disappearing from everyone’s line of sight.

She locks the door and carelessly tosses her belongings onto the bed before making her way to the bathroom, not wasting a single second. She’s already wasted a lot but there’s no point in dwelling on that. Right now, all she needs is a warm shower to rid her mind of nagging thoughts of Bryce.

 _He’s not worth it_ , she scolds herself.

While she waits for the water to be ready, she retrieves her favorite pair of pajamas from her closet. She grabs her phone from the haphazard pile of her things that have wrinkled her sheets, and proceeds to scroll through her music until she finds a feel-good playlist. 

Maybe she can trick her mind into thinking the night isn’t as bad as it is. She will.

Not long after, she finally undresses and gets under the showerhead. She shuts her eyes to heighten the feeling of the water pelting her back before it runs down her body as well as the beat each drop makes against the ceramic tiles. 

It’s enough to tune out unwanted reminders from just a short while ago. 

As soon as she steps out of the shower and changes into her sleepwear, she feels calmer. She almost gives herself a pat on the shoulder for pulling herself out of a breakdown but now in the silence of her bedroom, she’s tucked under her blanket with nothing for her senses to fixate on and distract her. The bed suddenly feels cold and lonely. 

Like her brain has switched to autopilot, it drifts back to Bryce. 

In this bed, he cried in front of her for the first time. He let his walls down like he never did with anyone else. He told her he wanted her more than anything. And that he wanted to forget about everything and just be together. Overcome with emotions, neither of them said another word after that. They didn’t have to because the way he kissed and touched her was enough to tell her that they were something more. And she believed it.

 _Stupid._

_Stupidstupidstupid_. With fresh tears pricking her eyes and staining her pillow, she continuously chants in her head. It’s all she can do before she falls into a slumber.

-

Quincy has a hazy recollection of the week that followed as she kept herself as busy with work as possible. 

Coincidentally, the Diagnostics team’s recent case is more complex than the ones they had. Still and all, that wasn’t the reason Quincy believed there’s a first time for everything; never in her three years at Edenbrook did she imagine that she would be genuinely grateful to Ethan for giving her some paperwork _and_ leaving her in charge of acquiring laboratory test results. When she was free, she went with Sienna to the pediatric ward. Otherwise, Quincy was in the Diagnostics office which meant she didn’t have to come up with a detour to avoid the surgery department.

But the week wasn’t exactly Bryce-free.

Quincy and her roommates were at the doctor’s lounge once when Bryce walked in, his movements obviously calculated as he greeted the group. She barely reciprocated his sentiment so instead of occupying the vacant spot next to her on the couch like he normally would, he carefully put his weight on the armrest next to Jackie who was sat opposite Quincy. Jackie only gave them both a weird look but neither said anything. Quincy didn’t have to look at Bryce to be aware of his gaze on her. It was gradually making her self-conscious but thankfully, her pager went off. She abruptly stood from the sofa and threw her roommates a quick goodbye before rushing out of the lounge.

Her friends subsequently picked up on her situation with Bryce. They’re still unaware as to what exactly happened between them but they’re respectful enough not to be nosy… yet. 

However, they did go out of their way to comfort her.

Elijah was more than willing to set up his gaming console in the living room so Quincy wouldn’t get bored while the rest of them were at Donahue’s. She initially thought she wouldn’t need it but found herself mistaken after two hours of jumping between the same three apps in her phone. 

She dragged herself out of her room and made a beeline to the living area. She plopped down on the couch, taking the stack of keep cases Elijah left for her on the coffee table, and browsed through them before ultimately picking Tekken. It was the only game she knew. 

Honestly, she merely wanted a distraction but five won matches later, she got too carried away. 

Quincy was grateful for Elijah’s generosity but Elijah regretted it. 

He expected to come home from Donahue’s to a new gaming buddy. Instead, he found out his roommate was a button smasher.

“Quincy!” He hurriedly wheeled himself to her, snatching the controller from her hands.

“What- No!” 

“You’re going to break it!”

“Elijah, give it b-” She was cut short when a glaring _GAME OVER_ appeared on the screen. She turned back to her friend. “I could’ve won that!”

“And I could’ve lost a controller.” He closely inspected the gaming device, making sure the buttons hadn’t jammed. 

They hadn’t but Elijah never let her use it again.

At work, Quincy continued to join Sienna at the pediatrics area when she wasn’t busy on the case. She wasn’t using it as a distraction; she sincerely enjoyed being there. One morning when she was helping out with breakfast, Sienna told her she looked radiant around the kids.

As to Aurora, she was the ideal confidant. Though she can be too candid for Quincy’s liking, her lucidity perfectly balances the latter’s tendency to be overly emotional. Aurora also never weighs in on her personal life unsolicitedly and she’s a really good listener.

Even Jackie was acting too benign for… well, Jackie. Quincy found it suspicious until the time she overheard Sienna and Aurora giving Jackie a crash course on how to be nice.

“Can’t we just meddle?” Jackie groaned.

“No,” answered Sienna. “It’s not our business.”

“I can’t even make fun of them anymore without feeling bad. _Especially_ Bryce!” 

Aurora snorted. “Nice to see you have your priorities straight.” 

Despite their efforts, Quincy is, once again, curled up in bed and sulking over a boy but she deems it justifiable. Has anyone really wisely dealt with unrequited feelings? Who cares if she’s almost 30? Age is just a number.

 _You’re a doctor_ , says the rational voice in her head. She ignores it.

She’s broken out of her reverie by a knock on her bedroom door, followed by Sienna’s head poking around it.

“We’re heading out.”

Quincy smiles at her warmly. “Have fun.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to come?” 

“You guys go ahead.”

Sienna sighs. “Fine. Text me if you need anything, okay?” When Quincy only nods, she quickly adds. “By the way, someone’s at the door for you.”

“I’m not expecting anyone,” Quincy tells her but Sienna’s already closed the door and the only response she receives is the rapidly fading sound of her roommate’s footsteps. 

Quincy moves to get out of bed and as soon as she steps out of her room, she faintly hears Jackie hissing at someone to “not fuck this up” and almost in the same beat, the front door being slammed shut.

She makes her way to the living room but shortly stops dead in her tracks.

“Bryce?”

“Hi...” He’s standing in the entryway, a small bouquet of sunflowers and peonies in his hands. “I, uh… I don’t know what your favorite is. I’m not even sure if you like flowers-”

“What are you doing here?” She cuts him off, though not unkindly.

There’s a tinge of anxiety in his eyes. His fingers fidget on the twine holding the bouquet together before he decides to set it down on the console table. 

“I’m sorry for everything. I know there’s no excuse for what I did but I’m sorry. I’m sorry I hurt you. It’s the last thing I ever wanted to do and I know I fucked that up and I’m sorry. For pushing you away. For…” He momentarily trails off but Quincy already knows what he’s thinking about. “I’m sorry for making you feel like you never mattered to me because you do. Quinn, you mean so much to me. The past three years have been amazing and it’s all because of you.”

Quincy feels herself suck in a breath. She half-expected the apology but everything else catches her off guard. Nevertheless, a bit of hope blooms in her chest.

_Please don’t say sike._

“Why are you just telling me this now?” She tells him instead.

“I wanted to do it right.”

“I don’t care how you did it.” He slightly deflates and Quincy steels herself as the sight pierces right through her heart. “I waited for you to say something.”

“I wanted to call. It’s all I’ve been thinking about but I was trying to find the right words to tell you… I know I already screwed up and the last thing I want is to say the wrong thing again.”

Quincy so badly wants to believe him but the voice of reason in her head asks at once, _what’s going to happen when things get complicated again?_ She has no answer to it. _What if he runs again?_

“What are we really doing here?” She weakly gestures between them. When Bryce doesn’t reply, she heavily sighs. “Bryce, I need to know if we’re on the same page. I can’t do this again.”

The expression on his face morphs, seemingly conflicted, and as Quincy expected, he deflects from the question. 

“You have your residency and it’s your last year and…” His voice starts to falter as a shaky breath escapes his lips. “When you’re done, I’m staying behind… and I know you’re gonna be great out there, Quinn. I can’t ask you to stay.” He tightens his jaw in an attempt to keep his tears at bay. 

It’s taken all her willpower to keep her resolve intact but she can’t even deny that the moment she saw Bryce tonight, she knew she was done for. Maybe neither of them anticipated it would get to this; she certainly didn’t. She never expected to fall too deep.

She’s tired of crying. She’s tired of pretending she doesn’t want to see him again when she’s dying to close the distance between them and admit she never stopped thinking about him; that he’s too important for her to just let go. 

She wants to tell him that even after all this, they’re going to be okay because it’s-

“‘ _Just you and me, together…_ ’” 

Quincy sentimentally quotes Bryce’s words back to him. He doesn’t seem to catch on so she continues. “You’d always tell me that so I’d stop worrying about everything that’s out of my control. Bobby and Danny... Or when we had to win over some donors at the gala…” _The residency_. She doesn’t mention it but a flicker in his eyes tells her he understood. 

“We did kiss some ass that night,” he quips in full contrast to the melancholy in his tone.

“Yeah…” Quincy chuckles with him, albeit humorlessly. The force of it causes a tear to run down her face and she quickly lifts a hand to wipe it away. “And then you told me to forget about it for a second. That in the moment it was just you and me.” A nostalgic smile tugs at her lips but it’s gone as soon as it comes. “Bryce, we talk about _everything_ —work, your family, your sister. We even talk about the stupidest things. Why can’t we talk about us?”

“Quinn, you’re leaving.” His voice trembles.

“We don’t know that yet,” she persuades him, her voice laced with desperation. “And we have time to figure it out. Just talk to me.”

Bryce studies her visage as if searching her face for any sign of pretense, but she’s certain he sees nothing but sincerity there. She’s never been more sure of anything. 

Quincy takes it upon herself to stride across the space between them. As she cradles his face, he turns his head to kiss her palm tenderly, before leaning into her touch and wrapping one of her hands in his.

“We’ll figure it out,” she reassures him.

A tear falls from his eye, mixing with the rest that have already stained his cheek, and she swipes over it with her thumb, ever so gently that he can’t stifle a sheepish grin. 

“God… so serious,” he banters their current situation.

A giggle bubbles past Quincy’s lips. She wraps her arms around his waist as he pulls her in an embrace. “Done pushing me away?”

“Mhm,” he hums in her hair before pulling back to look at her. “I don’t feel like getting threatened by Jackie again.” Quincy’s laughter rings through the apartment. As the melodious sound of it soon dies down, Bryce can’t help but watch her wistfully. “I’m sorry again.”

“It’s okay,” she tells him softly. She gives his chin a nudge with her nose, prompting Bryce to steal a kiss on her forehead. “What about your reputation?” 

“Hm?”

“This is the second time you’ve cried in front of me. It’s ruining your ‘highly awesome reputation’,” she teases. 

Bryce breathes out a laugh through his nose but it’s the most genuine that Quincy’s heard from him in weeks. He brings a hand up to affectionately stroke her cheek as he looks at her with a dreamlike stare.

“I don’t care if it’s you.” 

He leans closer until their lips are pressed together and she eagerly kisses him back. 

If Quincy’s being honest, she has no clue what’s in store for her. For them. A lot can happen in a year but that’s exactly what they have—a year to worry about it. 

So she pushes the thought all the way to the back of her mind and relishes in the presence of the man she has easily grown to love because right now, in his arms, there’s no Edenbrook. No residency. 

Just them.

**Author's Note:**

> i almost scrapped this fic because i was stuck on some scenes while others were already doing chapter 2 rewrites so if you read the whole thing, thank you so so much and i hope you liked it
> 
> i also wrote a [song](https://soundcloud.com/stfunikka/its-always-so-nice-with-you) based on the chapter, if you want to listen. i was that upset


End file.
